EXPLAINERIran says it wants talks, but blames US “breach of commitments, blockade and threats” for stalling negotiations. Published On 23 Apr 202623 Apr 2026Senior Iranian officials have blamed Washington for stalled peace talks, citing the United States naval blockade of the country’s ports as a key obstacle, as tensions escalate at sea, with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) capturing two foreign vessels and opening fire on a third.Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran seeks “dialogue and agreement”, but that “breach of commitments, blockade and threats” are hindering negotiations, while the White House said US President Donald Trump has set no deadline for the ceasefire extension, with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stressing the timing will be the president’s decision.Here is what we know:In Iran
Reopening Hormuz ‘not possible’: Iran’s parliament speaker said his country would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz as long as the US naval blockade remained in place, calling the latter a “blatant violation” of the two countries’ ceasefire.
Naval incidents escalate: Iran’s IRGC reported that they captured two foreign vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and opened fire on a third ship for violating their restrictions on ships passing through the waterway.
War diplomacy
No deadline for Iran peace plan: Trump has not set a deadline by which Iran must submit a peace proposal, the White House said on Wednesday. “The president has not set a firm deadline to receive an Iranian proposal, unlike some of the reporting I’ve seen today. Ultimately, the timeline will be dictated by the commander-in-chief,” Leavitt told journalists.
Lebanon-Israel talks face ‘functional flaws’: Mark Kimmitt, a retired US Army brigadier general and former assistant secretary of state, told Al Jazeera that Washington, DC talks aimed at reinforcing a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon are undermined by the absence of Hezbollah. “We have Israel, Lebanon and the United States there; we don’t have Hezbollah,” he said.
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